Coming Out, Again

Coming Out, Again celebrates International Women's Day 2013 by featuring current ABC Radio presenters looking back on the legacy of 'The Coming Out Show'. The commemorative broadcast will run on ABC Extra from 4pm on Tuesday 5 March until 11.59pm on Sunday 10 March.

This broadcast will be introduced by Tanya Plibersek, Minister for Health, and Julie Rigg, one of the founding producers on the show.

Across six days, some of the finest contemporary ABC Radio presenters will introduce shows from the original series, giving them a modern day perspective.

Covering topics such as open adoptions, abortion law reform, the politics of rape and women in prison, the Coming Out Show was a weekly program made by the Australian Women's

Broadcasting Cooperative set up by the ABC to commemorate the United Nations International Women's Year in 1975.

It was still going 20 years later.

The Cooperative was managed by a regular turnover of experienced broadcasters and was open to all women working in the ABC who wanted to learn radio skills.

The ground-breaking program unit kick started the careers of many of the ABC's current content makers and journalists, including Liz Jackson, Penny Lomax, Julie McCrossin, Lynne Malcolm and Jo Upham.

Episodes

Women and Psychology: Natasha Mitchell, host of Radio National's daily morning show Life Matters will introduce Coming Out Show 1982 - Women and psychology. This edition hosted by acclaimed broadcaster Ramona Koval looks at how science has helped feed all sorts of stereotypes about women and what they're capable of.

Intercourse: Rhianna Patrick from ABC Local Radio's Speaking Out program takes us back to 1987, when the hair was big and the shoulder pads were bigger. It was also the year that US feminist, Andrea Dworkin wrote the controversial book, Intercourse, which divided feminists and women alike.

Uncontrollable Girls: Emma Ayres, the Breakfast presenter for ABC Classic FM, brings us a piece from 1984 produced by Julie McCrossin and Wendy Bacin. It investigates girls who are pushing the boundaries of how a 'young lady' is meant to behave. It also explores how rules are different for boys.

Women in War: Suzanne Hill, a presenter on Statewide Afternoons and producer for Nightlife on Networked Local Radio introduces a compelling and challenging episode that looks at protests on ANZAC Day 1983 by women who wanted to call attention to the victims of rape in war.

Vietnamese Women and Young Madonna: Sheila Pham, the editor of ABC Pool and producer for ABC Radio hosts a program from 1984 which features five young women from different cultural backgrounds. It explores their experiences and cultural expectations around things like dating and behaviour in public.

Boobsalot: Melanie Tait, a broadcaster from RN's Now Hear This and ABC 666 Canberra brings us an episode from 1975 about men's obsession with women's breasts. It also explores why women have breasts, what they mean in different cultures, as well as what losing breasts means for a woman and for her sexuality.

Running Up A Frock: Jen Fleming, a presenter and producer for Networked Local Radio, introduces an episode from 1993 which looks at sewing, creativity and self esteem. It reflects on a time when many households had a sewing machine as part of the furniture, when sewing was a skill that most women practiced and before clothing was made cheaply in China.

Real Women wear Lab Coats: Bernie Hobbs, a broadcaster in the ABC Science Unit, brings us a piece from 1990 which aired when Bernie herself was a real girl in a lab coat. It looks at some of the challenges for women in the field, some of which haven't changed.

Cracks in the Lesbian Nation: Ali Benton, producer of ABC RN Drive with Julian Morrow, brings us an episode from 1994 that looks into issues of identity in the lesbian community. It may be uncomfortable listening at times for some, but it serves as a reminder of how far we've come.

For God and Family - The New Right in The USA: Bern Young, the Breakfast presenter on ABC Gold Coast, takes us to a piece about the politics of 1980. It explores opinions around the women's movement of the time and tracks the rise of the TV evangelists.

An Indecent Monopoly - Media Monopoly in Australia: Sarah Knight, the program director of ABC Regional Radio in WA, brings us an episode that covers the issue of media monopoly as encapsulated in Murdoch's domination of the British tabloid press. It's still as relevant today as it ever was.

The commemoration will end with a conclusion from Four Corners journalist Liz Jackson.